When I was about 7 or 8, I remember hearing my one sister say something to my other sister about the mafia.  I asked what the mafia was.  She answered that it's a group of people who commit organized crime.  I asked why the cops don't stop them.  She said it's because they own the cops. 

The mafia was my number one fear for the following few weeks. #psychology

Normally, people who live in quiet neighborhoods don't like the people who drive like maniacs through their neighborhood.  They go under the speed limit, even if it's 25mph.  They let cops sit in their driveways and nab speeders.  They want to keep their quiet, safe neighborhood a quiet, safe neighborhood.  I agree with this ideal to an extent. 

The problem is that I rarely, if ever, drive my car with little to no destination in mind.  I'm always going somewhere.  In the morning, I go to work.  At night, I come home from work.  On Saturdays, I go to Home Depot.  On Wednesday and Thursday nights, I go to Bible studies.  The bottom line is that I'm always on my way to something, and I can't for the life of me come up with a reason to postpone my arrival.  I'm driving to get somewhere, not to enjoy the ride.  This may be disagreeable to some, but it's how I work.  This is especially the case when I'm coming home from something.  My goal is to just get home.  I want to go in my house, turn up the heat, eat some food, sit on the couch, and pet my cats.  I don't want to be driving behind some mom in a minivan thinking she's doing her civic duty by slowing other people down. 

So I somewhat apologize to all those people I pass on the roads near my house.  I understand what you're trying to do, but I just don't care.  I'm sure you'll get over it. #travel

Why don't cars come with the functionality to turn off the headlights after a certain amount of time when the key isn't in the ignition?  When would you ever want to leave the lights on?  Maybe you just need a light source, and your car happens to be nearby.  In that case, you likely have easy access to your keys, so you can put your key in the ignition and use the headlights.  But I can't think of a time when you'd need the use of your headlights without the use of your key.  For that reason, all cars should have headlights that turn off automatically after a certain amount of time.  It's dumbfounding that this isn't already the case. 

It's the same with blinkers. #travel

There's a fly at work.  All day long, he rams himself into the light over my head.  Thankfully I'm mentally grounded (I am?), otherwise my employer would have a meltdown on their hands. 

This fly has been around for several weeks now.  Perhaps I don't understand how the world works, but I was under the impression that living beings require nourishment.  I was also under the impression that flies have a lifespan of only a few days.  Either this fly has some sort of secret stash of food and mating partners, or I've got a problem on my hands. #nature

Do people with foreign accents know they have accents? 

Can people from non-English-speaking countries tell the difference between different types of foreign accents, i.e. can a German-American tell the difference between a British accent and a southern accent? 

I will not rest until I can answer these questions. #language

In high school and college, I was friends with or acquaintances with a few people who were involved in unrewarding extracurricular activities like the school newspaper, the yearbook committee, and the alumni association.  These organizations seemed only to drain their members physically, mentally, emotionally, and creatively, leaving little life left to enjoy.  It didn't seem like these people enjoyed their involvement in these clubs, and there was barely any reward for their hard work and time spent, aside from lukewarm responses and a general lack of acknowledgment from their colleagues.  I never understood why these people continued their involvement in these clubs, and I still don't to this day.  I'm thankful for things like the yearbook, but the newspaper and the alumni association don't interest me.  I guess people have their reasons. #education

"Sic" seems to be a way to subtly yet professionally point out a person's spelling mistakes, as in "I hope that its (sic) not to (sic) late for your forgiveness..."  Me likes, mainly because I like pointing out people's mistakes. #language

There's an unincorporated town in Michigan called Hell.  It's in the news today because a couple from the town won the lottery.  The headline read "Couple from Hell wins Halloween lottery". 

I'd like to live near a town called Hell, simply for the jokes.  Here are a few: 

- Why don't you go to Hell ... to buy a picture frame for Mom's birthday?
- My ex-girlfriend was born in Hell.
- I've been through Hell and high water today ... because there was some flooding after the snow melted.
- I'd rather be in Hell than in this meeting.
- Hell froze over ... like it does every December.
- McDonald's is at exit 26 off the Highway to Hell. #travel

I heard it suggested recently that the word "fair" actually means "getting what you deserve" instead of "everybody gets the same thing".  The latter lines up better with the idea of "equality".  The topic was brought up by a high school teacher who's sick of students claiming something's not fair (e.g. one student getting punished for something while another student isn't).  She says to them, "Based on your performance up to this point, this is the outcome you deserve.  That's only fair." #psychology

As a frequent reader of tech geekery websites like TechCrunch, I often stumble upon companies and services offering a "private beta" because they're not quite ready for prime time.  This seems like a good idea when you want people to try out your service but you know it's not perfect and don't want to disappoint the masses. 

However, I'm taking the official stance that private betas are a bad idea.  For people like me who either don't have any experience being a beta tester or don't have the credentials to get an invite, private betas equate to a road block.  If there's no simple way around it, I quickly lose interest, and you've forever lost me as a customer (since I can't remember the last time something was in private beta and eventually came out, still maintaining my interest).  In the off chance I put my email address in your "Tell me when you're out of private beta" mailing list, I likely won't remember why I was interested in your company in the first place, so again, you've lost me as a customer. #technology